131–140 of 220 posts
Andy Skurka has a good writeup on why Gore-Tex is mostly hype: https://andrewskurka.com/why-im-hard-on-gore-tex-the-king-of...
Cheaper waterproof (not breathable) layers with ventilation (pit zips on jackets and full length zippers on pants) is the way to go. Paying premium for GORE-TEX has not been worth it in my experience.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I purchased a North Face jacket at their factory store in Berkeley, mid-1990s, the Gore Tex "Mountain Light" and a fleece "Denali" inner jacket. It fit me really well, for a 30-year anniversary I decided to get a new one last week. They still make the same design. The new one uses their nano-spun FutureLight fabric, rather than a three-layer nylon(?)/GoreTex sandwich. It's much more soft, like a woven fabric rather t…
Why did you correct to polycarbonate, a narrow category of plastics? Plastics is a very broad descriptor suitable for capturing all kinds of improvements in plastics and I don’t think any zippers are even made from polycarbonate.
Steve Jobs had a beautiful phase 20+ years ago, selling MacBooks made of "the finest German polycarbonate"...
... which at the time, sounded exactly like another great sales pitch from a more elegant age...
Earlier quoted context omitted.
The Gore-TEX membrane in the shoe also tends to break down quite quickly. Think on the order of months if worn daily.
Yup, Gore-TEX shoes don't stay waterproof long enough to justify the cost in my mind. If I know my feet are going to be wet for 6+ hours I go with my shoes-with-drain and waterproof socks, over N layers of thin wool socks depending on temperature. I have only replaced the socks twice because I don't use em too much. I've found for offshore sailing or backpacking in the wet that Sealskinz (not gore-tex) are the best.…
I recently learned in order for a product to have the Gore-Tex label, not only do you have to license the process/formula from them, but you have to send engineering samples to them and they perform their own independent testing before allowing you to actually sell the product. There’s no doubt part of the success is the chemistry of the product, but the required independent testing to very high standards also likely…
This is the main advantage to it imho. I hike all day in Northern CA for work, so good rain gear is needed. There are plenty of options without GORE-TEX that are satisfactorily rain proof, but the ones with GORE-TEX are almost always better quality and have a better warranty. The REI Rainer is a good example of something that is generally good enough at keeping water out, but its relatively poorly made compared to their XeroDry jacket that includes GORE-TEX. It just leads to the end product being higher quality.
it's just too bad that once the inside of a goretex product gets wet it takes twice as long for it to dry. don't take goretex on long multi day excursions if there's a chance of getting soaked
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I purchased a North Face jacket at their factory store in Berkeley, mid-1990s, the Gore Tex "Mountain Light" and a fleece "Denali" inner jacket. It fit me really well, for a 30-year anniversary I decided to get a new one last week. They still make the same design. The new one uses their nano-spun FutureLight fabric, rather than a three-layer nylon(?)/GoreTex sandwich. It's much more soft, like a woven fabric rather t…
The new stuff sounds great, but how durable is it? Every time i've come across a new and improved breathable waterproofing technology recently, it comes with the significant downside that the fabric is a lot less durable. When it's raining, i wear my anorak. But when it's not raining, it's rolled up in a plastic bag and bungeed to my bike bag, or shoved into my satchel, or stuffed into a corner of my carry-on luggage…
I never got around to patching that... but yes there's tough stuff.
The Marmot gear I tried, the "Durable Water Repellent" (DWR) is claimed to be more durable than previous Gore Tex products. That's important because when the surface DWR is dirty with oils or abraded, it will wet out, saturate, and while the PTFE membrane won't leak liquid water, now it's not passing vapor either: you generally end up damp or worse. Condensation etc.
Which is why Gore Tex certification covered the whole process, the final product design.
I don't yet have decades of experience with current products. But honestly comparing them, the newer ones seem to be far superior build quality. That's hard for me to quantify.
The product reviews for the North Face FutureLight gear have noted how they hold up, scrambling over rocks and during Alpine style ascent.
I recently learned in order for a product to have the Gore-Tex label, not only do you have to license the process/formula from them, but you have to send engineering samples to them and they perform their own independent testing before allowing you to actually sell the product. There’s no doubt part of the success is the chemistry of the product, but the required independent testing to very high standards also likely…
Not only that, but Gore will honour their “guaranteed to keep you dry” warranty. I had a Gore-Tex jacket that the manufacturer refused to replace after it delaminated about 3 years after I bought it. One call to Gore and I got the purchase price of the jacket in a prepaid credit card sent to me after sending them the jacket.
Edit: I checked and bought these shoes in April 2020. I guess I will try to contact them?!
The product was "Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 36 Trail GTX Gore Tex". I wonder where I should contact them?
Gore-TEX and other waterproof breathable (WPB) membrane fabrics are ridiculously oversold to people who don't spend much time outside. The amount of breathability they offer is ludicrously low compared to something like unzipping a jacket zipper or pit vent. If you're moving at all, a WPB jacket means that you'll be drenched from the inside due to sweat, and all that water repelled by your jacket ends up on your pant…
I absolutely agree. The breathability of goretex is extremely poor to the point that I consider it a scam. If it's not raining you'll be way more comfortable with plain fabric, especially wool. If it is raining, you'll be just as comfortable in a plastic raincoat (especially polyurethane) with pit zips, and you will stay dry a lot longer in a heavy pour. Gore-tex shells don't breath at all unless you keep up the DWR…
> If it's not raining you'll be way more comfortable with plain fabric, especially wool. If it is raining, you'll be just as comfortable in a plastic raincoat (especially polyurethane) with pit zips, and you will stay dry a lot longer in a heavy pour.
I grew up wearing both, and then later added waxed cotton. Sorry, just ick.
You can have my goretex jackets (Arcteryx, Berghaus, Mountain Equipment) when you pry them from the fingers of my not-so-cold, only-slightly-wet dead hands.
Gore-TEX and other waterproof breathable (WPB) membrane fabrics are ridiculously oversold to people who don't spend much time outside. The amount of breathability they offer is ludicrously low compared to something like unzipping a jacket zipper or pit vent. If you're moving at all, a WPB jacket means that you'll be drenched from the inside due to sweat, and all that water repelled by your jacket ends up on your pant…
Gore-TEX and other waterproof breathable (WPB) membrane fabrics are ridiculously oversold to people who don't spend much time outside. The amount of breathability they offer is ludicrously low compared to something like unzipping a jacket zipper or pit vent. If you're moving at all, a WPB jacket means that you'll be drenched from the inside due to sweat, and all that water repelled by your jacket ends up on your pant…
You shouldn’t move wearing Gore-TEX in my experience. If you stop and it’s wet you put it on while stopped. You take it off when you start moving again. If you’re moving you’re going to be wet anyway (sweat) so no point trying to stay dry from the outside. Best application is sleeping bag covers. Worst application is boots. Makes no sense.
If water ever goes over the top of the shoes, it is impossible for it to leave the shoe (since it is in liquid phase, not gaseous like water vapor).